Memories, tears mark newscast a day after on-air shootings ROANOKE, Va. — A day after two journalists were slain on live television, their colleagues at a Virginia morning newscast returned to the air with memories, tears and a determination to carry on the victims' dedication to the news. The emotional crescendo of WDBJ-TV's "Mornin'" show on Thursday came when two anchors and a weatherman joined hands to mark a moment of silence at 6:45 a.m., 24 hours after the shooting. "We are approaching a moment...

Former bank CEO pleads guilty to fraudFAYETTEVILLE — A former Arvest Bank executive has pleaded guilty in a Fayetteville federal court to one count of bank fraud. Fifty-two-year-old H. Dennis Smiley Jr. pleaded guilty Tuesday. The former CEO of Arvest Bank of Benton County was accused of using his stock in the bank as collateral to borrow money from about 20 banks. Smiley resigned from the bank in March 2014. A sentencing date has not been set.

Exposure suspect caughtA Clarksville man was arrested on suspicion of sexual indecency with a minor following a report he exposed himself to school children on Monday. After receiving a tip from a local citizen, investigators with the Russellville Police Department (RPD) interviewed Joshawa White, 31, of Clarksville. After the interview, White was placed under arrest and transported to the Pope County Detention Center on suspicion of several counts of sexual indecen...

Boy pleads not guilty in death of guardiansCONWAY — A 14-year-old boy from central Arkansas pleaded not guilty Tuesday to two counts of capital murder in the July 21 shooting deaths of a couple who raised him as their grandson. Wearing jail garb and shackled at the waist, Justin Staton did not speak during Tuesday’s arraignment in Faulkner County Circuit Court. He is charged as an adult in the killing of Robert and Patricia Cogdell, both 66. The Cogdells were found shot to death at the...

Circuit clerk's office out of compliance with Arkansas lawJONESBORO — The Craighead County Circuit Clerk's office likely has been in violation of an Arkansas law that deals with juvenile court records for the last 25 years, according to Circuit Clerk Candace Edwards. Under the state law enacted in 1989, the records must be expunged on a juvenile's 21st birthday unless certain criteria are met, The Jonesboro Sun (http://bit.ly/1JjpP4q ) reports. Edwards told the Craighead County Quorum Court on Monday...

2 men held without bail for alleged threats to Pokemon event BOSTON — Two men from Iowa made online threats against Pokemon competitors — referring to the Boston Marathon bombings and the Columbine High School massacre — then drove 25 hours to Boston, where they were stopped as they tried to register for the World Pokemon Championships, police said Monday. Kevin Norton, 18, of Ames, Iowa, and James Stumbo, 27, of Boone, Iowa, were ordered held without bail on gun charges Monday pending a dangerousness h...

RPD investigates indecent exposureRussellville Police Department officers responded to the report of an indecent exposure at approximately 3:20 p.m. Monday at the intersection of Knoxville Avenue and East Main Street. Officers determined after a preliminary on scene investigation that a male driving a white Chrysler Sebring exposed himself to students on a Russellville School District bus. The driver was wearing a bandana or a mask covering his face. Students informed the bus ...

Woman gets 10-year probation sentence in sex assault case TEXARKANA — A woman has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a teenage boy while she served as a youth leader at a Texarkana church. The Texarkana Gazette (http://bit.ly/1WQ2JcO ) reports that 29-year-old Victoria Rose Nash pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of sexual assault of a child by a person in a position of authority. As part of a plea agreement, she was sentenced to a 10-year probation term. She also must register as a sex offende...

Arkansas judge arrested, charged with domestic batteryLONOKE — Police say a judge in central Arkansas faces charges after he assaulted his girlfriend at a home in Lonoke. Joe O'Bryan was arrested Friday night on a charge of third-degree domestic battery and has been released on a $620 bond. O'Bryan was first elected in 1990 as a judge in Cabot District Court. The director of the Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission has filed a complaint against him. Attempts to contact O'Bryan by the Ark...

Former Searcy police chief pleads guilty to drug chargeLITTLE ROCK — Former Searcy Police Chief Jeremy Clark pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge that "effectively ends" a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigation that led to Clark's resignation in March, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Givens. In a document filed Friday, Christopher Thyer, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, charged that Clark, 36, "knowingly and intentionally possessed a Sched...

Arkansas youth lockup reports increase in violence for 2014LITTLE ROCK — The largest lockup for youth in Arkansas reports a 25 percent increase in violence in 2014 from 2013. Records obtained by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/1EOt5ka ) show 832 violent acts such as assaults, fights and youths harming themselves at the Arkansas Juvenile Assessment and Treatment Center, up from 664 in 2013. The center near Alexander is privately run by Tampa, Florida-based G4S Youth Services and holds abou...

Sheriff's office seeks rape suspectThe Pope County Sheriff's Office issued a bulletin Monday asking for the public's help in locating Aaron Lyle Riddle, 35, who is wanted on two counts of rape. Riddle's last known address is 4995 Gunter Mountain Road in Hector. He was last seen driving a 1994 black Nissan pickup truck, with Arkansas license No. 065PXB. He has no known weapons. PCSO advised Riddle has made some suicidal gestures recently. Riddle is a white male, 6 feet tall and ...

Former juvenile guard charged with exposing inmate to HIVLITTLE ROCK — A former guard at the White River Juvenile Detention Center in Batesville has been charged with exposing a 17-year-old inmate to the virus that causes AIDS. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that 27-year-old Bradley Kyle Hopper of Batesville is charged in Independence County Circuit Court with a plea hearing scheduled for Tuesday. Jail records show Hopper is being held in the Independence County jail. No attorney is listed fo...

Fogle to plead guilty to sex acts, child porn chargesINDIANAPOLIS — Longtime Subway pitchman Jared Fogle agreed Wednesday to plead guilty to allegations that he paid for sex acts with minors and received child pornography in a case that destroyed his career at the sandwich-shop chain and could send him to prison for more than a decade. Prosecutors alleged that Fogle knew the pornography had been secretly produced by the former director of his charitable foundation, which sought to raise awarenes...

Prosecutors withdraw theft charges against ex-court clerkHOT SPRINGS — Prosecutors have withdrawn felony theft charges against a former Garland County District Court clerk accused of embezzling more than $40,000. Garland County Prosecuting Attorney Terri Harris told the Sentinel-Record (http://bit.ly/1TRk3Pq ) on Monday that they could refile the charges against Donna Linda Schleeter, but that she likely would be acquitted at trial with their current evidence. "Some new information came to light tha...

Police searching for Hot Springs duo who stole alligators LITTLE ROCK — Jamie Bridges said Monday he is worried that two thieves who stole a dozen baby alligators from his family's Hot Springs tourist attraction won't know how to properly care for them. Two people broke into the Arkansas Alligator Farm and Petting Zoo early Saturday morning wearing masks and gloves and stole the 12 babies as well as a 7-year-old alligator. "Those little ones won't make it if they don't care for them the right way," B...